Theary Seng

Theary Seng is an activist, author, and human rights defender who is well-known for her criticism of the Hun Sen regime in Cambodia. In 2022, Theary was imprisoned and sentenced to six years in prison after being convicted of “conspiracy to commit treason” and incitement of social disorder, alongside dozens of activists and political opposition leaders. The basis of her detention was a number of Facebook posts criticizing the regime. Theary was first sentenced to Preah Vihear prison, some 300km away from family in a remote northern province of Cambodia, then after 15 months, she was transferred to Prey Sar Correction Center II in Phnom Penh without notice or reason. The American Bar Association and Clooney Foundation for Justice co-published a detailed TrialWatch report, which gave her trial a grade of “F,” finding her trial “entailed a gross violation of international standards that affected the outcome and/or resulted in significant harm.” Additionally, in March 2023, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found her detention to be arbitrary and in violation of international law.